"Looks like I'll have to go in and check things out. Otherwise, I won't know what the current situation with the Restorer Faction is."
Ye Yunfei glanced at the location of the secret base's entrance and exit in the distance, his thoughts racing internally.
After a moment's consideration, Ye Yunfei retrieved a Doppelganger Statue. A Soul Power star surged out from his soul sea and integrated into the statue.
Having consumed numerous Demigod Soul Bodies, Ye Yunfei could now replicate the aura of any of them at will. Once the Soul Power star he released entered the statue's head, it immediately simulated the aura of a Demigod Soul Body he had previously consumed, transforming the Doppelganger Statue into the likeness of that specific Demigod.
Naturally, it was a strand of Ye Yunfei's Soul Power imprint, hidden deep within a concealed compartment of the statue, that truly controlled it.
Next, this Doppelganger Statue, holding a Restorer identity token, quietly departed from Ye Yunfei's ship. It activated a stealth technique and cautiously made its way towards the entrance of the Restorer secret base.
After Ye Yunfei killed the seven fake Restorers, their identity tokens had also fallen into his hands, proving useful now.
Once the statue left the ship, Ye Yunfei immediately urged the ship to fly swiftly into the distant void, distancing itself from the secret base. If anything were amiss inside the base, the statue's entry would likely alert any enemies within, prompting them to investigate.
Soon, Ye Yunfei's ship was far from the void region housing the secret base.
He then found an ordinary World Cluster nearby, entered one of its worlds, set up a small Formations space, and retreated into the Phantom Tower to begin secluded cultivation.
"I'm already a Perfect Demigod at the Nine-Nine Return to True Immortal level. With sufficient experience and accumulation, I can attempt to break through to the Deity realm and undergo the Godly Ascension Tribulation. If I become a Deity, I'll be able to handle the Guardian Faction and those other major forces," Ye Yunfei mused with some anticipation.
However, Ye Yunfei faintly sensed his Godly Ascension Tribulation wouldn't come anytime soon. But that was normal. After all, he was still young and had only recently become a Perfect Demigod.
"Better to cultivate diligently, build a solid foundation, and only pursue the tribulation once I have sufficient accumulation and experience," Ye Yunfei murmured softly before focusing entirely on his cultivation.
Using both his Soul Bodies and all his Soul Power stars simultaneously, Ye Yunfei cultivated multiple techniques and martial skills. While cultivating, he also retrieved his alchemy furnace and a large batch of medicinal materials, practicing alchemy concurrently.
Possessing two Soul Bodies and twenty-five Soul Power stars—each star acting as a soul body in its own right—Ye Yunfei effectively had twenty-seven soul consciousnesses. Of course, one soul consciousness was now integrated into the Doppelganger Statue infiltrating the Restorers' secret base, leaving twenty-four Soul Power stars. He could thus divide his attention to perform twenty-four different tasks without interference, equivalent to having twenty-four minds working at once. Cultivating while refining pills posed absolutely no hindrance.
Among the cultivation resources gifted by Miss Jiang was a massive quantity of medicinal herbs, a considerable portion being Deity-grade, along with many Demigod-grade ones. Combined with the even larger stock of Demigod-grade herbs Ye Yunfei had harvested previously, he had more Demigod-grade herbs than he could use for the time being.
As for the Deity-grade herbs, Ye Yunfei wasn't yet proficient enough to refine divine pills with them, so he stored them away for future use.
And so, while cultivating and refining pills, half a year passed unnoticed within the Phantom Tower.
"What's going on?
That Doppelganger Statue entered the secret base and hasn't sent back any message at all," Ye Yunfei suddenly stopped cultivating, a frown creasing his brow as he realized something might indeed be wrong with the Restorers' secret base.
Otherwise, once the statue investigated inside, it should have used its Restorer identity token to send information immediately. But so far, Ye Yunfei's own token hadn't received anything, indicating an abnormal situation.
"It seems this Restorer secret base must have met with trouble. It might have already been occupied by the Guardian Faction. What of the Restorers themselves now?" Hun Lao said.
"Most likely, their situation isn't good. Could they have been killed? Otherwise, why hasn't the Restorer leadership responded to the messages sent by these members scouting outside?" the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm chimed in.
Ye Yunfei's expression darkened. He hadn't expected the Restorer Faction to encounter misfortune again while he was inside the Samsara Passage and Samsara Cave.
"The Guardian Faction truly aims to eradicate us root and branch. And the other major forces are in cahoots with them, colluding to deal with our Restorer Faction. It's utterly hateful.
Our Restorer Faction acts for the sake of the entire Void Sea, wanting to protect this sea and all the indigenous life within it.
But those Watchers treat all beings in this void as sinners and will eventually destroy it. They are the true enemies of all life here, yet those major factions fail to distinguish between friend and foe," Ye Yunfei said through gritted teeth.
"Those factions aren't failing to distinguish; they're just blinded by immediate benefits. In the face of massive profits, why would they care about who the real enemy is?" Hun Lao replied helplessly.
"If the Restorer Faction has truly met with disaster, what are your plans next?" Hun Lao asked Ye Yunfei.
"Try to find out the current situation. Clarify matters first," Ye Yunfei answered after a moment's thought.
"I believe, even if the secret base is compromised, the Restorer Faction wouldn't have been completely annihilated. They do have several Deities, after all.
Right, if my efforts fail, I can seek out the Master of Xiaoliang Temple. He's allied with the Restorers; he would surely know what happened," Ye Yunfei added.
"That's right! We can ask the Master of Xiaoliang Temple. He would definitely know," Hun Lao exclaimed, grasping Ye Yunfei's meaning. They had met him not long ago, though at that time, the Master was engaged in fierce combat with a Dark Faction Deity, prompting Ye Yunfei's earlier departure.
Ye Yunfei went to the several dozen rescued Restorers who had been quietly recuperating within the Phantom Tower.
"Have any of you received a reply from the Restorer leadership?" he asked.
"No, not yet," the Restorers all shook their heads.
"I suspect the secret base has been compromised. Everyone, we need to figure out what has actually happened to the faction.
Where are the other Restorers? Are they safe?" Ye Yunfei said slowly.
Hearing this, the expressions of the dozens of Restorers turned grim. The Restorer Faction was once a powerful force with Deities presiding, but now, first the headquarters was destroyed, and now the secret base might be gone too.
"Alright, let's split up and go our separate ways to gather information. We'll keep in touch.
Let's leave a trace of our personal auras in each other's identity tokens. When we send messages later, we can verify they're from one of us present here.
To guard against another trap like the one we just escaped," one Restorer suggested.
The others all nodded in agreement.
So, the several dozen Restorers, including Ye Yunfei, each left a trace of their aura in the others' tokens, allowing future communication to be verified.
Next, Ye Yunfei transferred all the Restorers out of the Phantom Tower. They then dispersed, heading in different directions.
These Restorers were specialists in gathering intelligence, skilled in covert movement and maintaining low profiles—their expertise—so Ye Yunfei wasn't overly worried for them.
Soon, all the Restorers were gone. Once they had departed, Ye Yunfei quietly left that world as well.
Not long after, Ye Yunfei returned to the vicinity of the Restorer secret base entrance, concealing himself at a distance to observe.
"Well?
Can you sense the Doppelganger Statue?" Hun Lao asked.
"I've completely lost touch with it. Since entering the secret base, it's as if it vanished, cut off," Ye Yunfei shook his head.
"That looks very abnormal," Hun Lao said.
"I suspect this base has been occupied by the Guardian Faction. There might even be a Deity from their side lying in wait inside, hoping for Restorers like you to walk straight into the trap. Don't go in. Don't take the risk," Hun Lao advised, knowing Ye Yunfei was contemplating entering himself.
"That's possible. Forget it, let's leave. Consider that statue lost," Ye Yunfei nodded, then added.
Although losing the statue pained him, Ye Yunfei understood that if a Deity truly was lying in wait, entering would lead to significant trouble. He had to accept the loss.
Ye Yunfei turned and quietly left.
"Where to now?" Hun Lao asked once they were a safe distance from the secret base's region.
"I intend to visit Xiaoliang Temple to see if I can find its Master," Ye Yunfei replied after some thought.
Although Xiaoliang Temple's headquarters had been attacked, the Master happened to be away on important business when it happened, leading to heavy casualties. Ye Yunfei figured the Master would likely return to check on his temple.
Thus, Ye Yunfei began making his way towards Xiaoliang Temple. He didn't use a Restorer faction ship, opting instead for space-teleportation talismans combined with his own movement speed. While not as fast as the specialized ship, this method was safer and less likely to expose his whereabouts.
Eventually, Ye Yunfei arrived at the void region belonging to Xiaoliang Temple. As a prominent force within the Chaotic Void Sea, Xiaoliang Temple occupied an entire World Cluster known as the Xiaoliang World Cluster.
Approaching the Xiaoliang World Cluster, Ye Yunfei didn't enter immediately. He concealed himself, observing and sensing.
Soon, he discovered the world cluster was eerily silent, devoid of any signs of life or activity.
"What's going on? Has Xiaoliang Temple's headquarters been destroyed?" Ye Yunfei wondered inwardly.
"This Xiaoliang Temple headquarters seems empty. I can't sense any life aura inside at all," the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm spoke up.
"I can't sense anything either," Hun Lao confirmed.
"Wait, you have so many Corpse Slaves. Send one in to scout the situation. We avoided using them at the Restorer base because we didn't know if it was already exposed. Here at Xiaoliang Temple, there's no such concern—no exposure risk," Hun Lao suggested.
"Right, I can send a Corpse Slave in to investigate," Ye Yunfei agreed.
Actually, he had considered sending a Corpse Slave into the Restorer secret base earlier, but he hadn't been certain if the base was compromised. If it wasn't, sending a Corpse Slave barging through the entrance would have been far too conspicuous, potentially exposing the base's location itself. The more stealthy Doppelganger Statue had been the better choice.
At Xiaoliang Temple's headquarters, such worries were unnecessary.
Thus, Ye Yunfei immediately released a Corpse Slave, instructing it to stealthily enter the Xiaoliang World Cluster. Simultaneously, Ye Yunfei activated a space-teleportation talisman and retreated a greater distance, concealing himself in a different location.
Soon, the Corpse Slave entered the world cluster. Ye Yunfei waited quietly at a distance.
A few hours later, Ye Yunfei's expression shifted. The Corpse Slave had emerged.
"It's empty inside! The entire world cluster is barren! Not a single living being!" Ye Yunfei was startled upon receiving the information from his Corpse Slave.
"Xiaoliang Temple is one of the famous major powers in the Chaotic Void Sea. Its Xiaoliang World Cluster must have been a bustling, lively place. Now it's devoid of anyone," Hun Lao was equally astonished.
"Since it's empty, let's go in and take a look ourselves. I think Senior Temple Master is highly likely to return here. Perhaps we'll be able to meet him," Ye Yunfei said after a moment's thought.